About the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office
Dedicated to justice, community safety, and rehabilitation.
Who We Are
At the Newport News Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, we are committed to upholding justice and serving the citizens of Newport News. With an unwavering dedication to the pursuit of truth and fairness, we strive to create a safer community for everyone who calls Newport News home.
We maintain open lines of communication with law enforcement agencies, community organizations, and crime victims to foster a collaborative approach to crime prevention and prosecution. By working together, we can build stronger cases, address community concerns, and create lasting solutions that enhance public safety.
Below, learn more about our efforts to help create a safer community through specialty dockets like the Drug Treatment Court and the Behavioral Health Docket. These programs offer alternatives to incarceration and are consistent with our commitment to maintaining a safer community.
Specialty Dockets
Behavioral Health Docket
The Commonwealth Attorney’s Office supports and helped create a Behavioral Health Docket. Participants living in Newport News and Hampton with charges pending in General District Court may apply to participate in the docket. Applicants must have serious mental illness that impairs on life functioning.
Successful participants leave the program more medically stable and having been connected to resources for therapy, housing, and jobs. Successful participants may have their charges reduced or the prosecution ended.
The goal of the program is to reduce the number of times a person with mental illness interacts with the court system as a defendant while reducing potential harms to the community. Victims are consulted about participation before an applicant is accepted.
Drug Docket Program
The Newport News Drug Treatment Court Program partners with the Hampton-Newport News Community Services Board to provide court-supervised treatment and support as an alternative to incarceration for individuals charged with non-violent crimes related to substance abuse. Participants receive counseling, drug testing, housing and employment assistance, and mental health treatment while progressing through program phases, with the goal of achieving lasting sobriety and successful reintegration into the community.
